Viral
by Viral
Summary: Story Completed. Response to a challenge: No more telepaths or TKs -- create a mutant whose powers are quite unique. The X-Men encounter something that could have never been expected.
1. A New Mutant

Title: Viral  
  
Author: Viral  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men. Claimer: I do own Viral.  
  
Author's Note: This story is the result of a fan fiction challenge.  
  
The challenge: No more telepaths or TKs -- create a mutant whose powers are quite unique...  
  
Note: The X-Men, Generation-X, and Blink from AoA are included.  
  
-=-=-  
  
Professor Xavier's voice was neither light nor playful when he turned his wheelchair around to face Scott Summers. They were located in the war room, both with frowns and wrinkles of frustration pressing against their foreheads. "Scott, assemble the entire team that is inside the mansion. We do not have time to waste."  
  
"But Professor, this is one mutant we're dealing with," Scott answered in reproach, "Jean and myself could easily..."  
  
"Scott, listen to me!" Xavier's blue eyes looked into Scott's ruby quartz eyeglasses. "If it were possible to get this mutant that easily I would not be asking you to assemble the team. Now, get everyone down here into the war room, and do so quickly."  
  
Scott turned away but before he could exit the room he was stopped by Xavier's voice. "And make sure everyone suits up." Scott continued out of the room as the automatic door opened with a slight sound of electric whirring in the walls.  
  
After the door closed behind Scott, Xavier rolled his wheelchair to his normal position at the table. He picked up Cerebro from the table and placed it upon his baldhead. His eyes closed in concentration as he quickly located the mutant signature he had been watching for the past two hours. He had felt this mutant before in the past, but it had not been nearly as attracting as it was now. Through his mind's eye he watched the course of action as things became much more threatening than the last time he had checked.  
  
"What's the problem, Chuck? I've been needin some action lately," Logan said. He was the first to arrive and his voice disturbed the Professor's mental session. He took off the helmet and opened his eyes.  
  
He watched Logan stand there for a moment. Both of their eyes were icy cold blue, and neither blinked until Xavier finally spoke. "Logan, sit down."  
  
Logan growled from the sudden order. Xavier wasn't normally like this. The only times that sprouted to memory when Xavier was harsh was when Jean was being mentally and bodily consumed by the Dark Phoenix, and in the sudden appearance of Xavier's lost lover, Amelia. He didn't sit down, but did walk from in front of the electronic door. If there was one thing he loved besides pulling out his adamantium claws, it was defying orders.  
  
The next person to arrive in the room was Rogue, followed by Beast, Scott, Jean, and Gambit. They all sat down when the entered, some eyeing Logan, and others watching Xavier as he sat with his eyes closed and his hands folded. Then the door swished open again. Into the room entered Blink, better known as Clarice Ferguson, and behind her came Storm.  
  
"My apologies for the wait, Charles. Convincing Clarice to come here was not an easy task," Ororo said as she took her seat.  
  
"It's not everyday I get a white-haired weather-controlling mutant hunting me down. So, what's the deal Xavier?" Blink said, monochromatically, with a demanding scowl on her face.  
  
Xavier did not begin to answer until Blink and Storm took their seats. He began with a contemplating sigh, "X-Men, we have a very serious problem here. If it were not so, I would not have gathered you all in this manner. It has come to my attention, through Cerebro, that there is a very powerful mutant using his abilities very rapidly. He is in an urban city in Northern New Jersey. Although his abilities are far from vast, the things they are doing are, what I believe, beyond his control.  
  
As I scanned throughout his memory, it seems he has taken the name, Viral. Currently, he is in a highly populate area and his abilities are running wild."  
  
"Professor, you're being extremely vague. What exactly can he do?" Jean asked, being the analytic person that she is.  
  
"It's not what he can do, Jean, but what he does," Xavier said then gave another one of his famous contemplating sighs. "His abilities are much like Rogue's, in a sense that they are beyond his natural control. But unlike Rogue's, his abilities are not only deadly to those around him, but every form of matter, including himself."  
  
"Professor, please be frank with us," Beast interjected.  
  
"Viral is a teenager with a genetic mutation that has made his body into a domineering virus!" Xavier said, banging his fist on his desk. Most of the room gasped with Xavier's rush of words and sudden anger.  
  
"So why don't you just knock him out and send Jean to pick him up with some telekinetic crap?" Blink asked, annoyed.  
  
"I told you already, it is beyond his control. The risk of putting him into a mental hiatus is not possible without allowing his skin to pollute the very air with deadly toxins."  
  
"Professor, there are cures for toxins and airborne viruses. If there is a disease, then there most certainly be a cure," Beast responded.  
  
"Hank, you do not understand. The viruses that his skin ejects are forms of cells that we have never encountered before as the human race," Xavier replied, calmer than before.  
  
"So tell me this, hun, how has he managed not to kill hisself so far?" Rogue answered in her southern accent, with her elbows on the table and her gloved hands holding up her chin.  
  
"Somehow he has found a way not to infect his clothing, although at times he has lost that control and ended up naked in public areas when his clothing deteriorated."  
  
"Wait, this doesn't make any logical sense. Viruses are living objects, they cannot infect non-living things," said with his arms in the air in confusion.  
  
"I warned you this would be something you never encountered, Hank."  
  
"The situation sounds urgent, should we not be discussing this on the Blackbird instead of in the war room?" Ororo asked with her head slightly tilted to the side.  
  
"I have contacted Sean Cassidy and Emma Frost already. They have taken Generation X to try and stop the mutant.  
  
"So how are de kiddies doin, mon ami?" Gambit asked, shuffling cards on the table.  
  
"TV on," Scott commanded. The recessed lighting in the room began to dim as a large screened television, implanted in the wall, turned on. There on the screen was a newscast and the events were not 'eye candy'.  
  
-=-=-=-  
  
"Aye, Emma, what do we do now?" Banshee yelled from atop of a building. Emma Frost was below on the ground looking fiercely at Viral as he ran down a side street.  
  
"I don't know, Sean," she yelled in response, "There doesn't seem to be anyway to stop him."  
  
"I know what to do," Jubilee said as she began to run in the direction of Viral, obviously a trait she had picked up from Wolverine.  
  
"Jubes, wait up!" Husk, otherwise called Paige Guthrie, called out behind the fiery black-haired girl.  
  
Monet St. Croix, with the alias of M, hovered down to a standstill as Banshee did likewise from the building's roof. Emma shook her head as she mentally commanded Jubilee and Husk to stop and lay back, but they did not listen to her.  
  
M put up her arms as she explained where she had just arrived from, "Leech and Artie got a very bad taste of the polluted air. I took them into the jet and put them on the respirators. We shouldn't have brought them out here."  
  
"But Leech is the only one possible to stop this mutant's abilities, if even only temporary." Chamber said telepathically as he came running up behind M.  
  
"I know, I know. But that's not even the bulk of it. When Everett approached Viral he copied his abilities. Normally, Everett is able to gain a lot of control and even advance the mutant's abilities to which he has become in sync with. This time, however, was different. His Generation-X clothes deteriorated and he's lain bare in the jet. I was able to cover him up with something, and I'm hoping the abilities have left his body. Otherwise we'll need transportation home."  
  
"Enough with the chit-chat, Everett will be fine. We must stop Viral at all costs!" Emma said with authority. Looking around she saw a fire hydrant spewing water, entire sky scrapers collapsing to nothing but small piles of dust that resembled ant farms, and people wailing on the ground, dying from a virus eluded from Viral's body.  
  
"We've tried fighting him. The only we ye can beat him is to knock him out!" Banshee said.  
  
"Even subconsciously his mutant abilities work. That will be of no use. At least now he's trying to contain them."  
  
"So what do we do?"  
  
"I have a plan, but I may need Hank McCoy's help. In the meantime, stall for life."  
  
"Aagh!" came an ear-piercing scream that was followed by a loud collapse. Another skyscraper was on its way down as a green mold could be seen quickly traveling on it's exterior.  
  
-=-=-=-  
  
"Jubilee!" Wolverine shouted and growled as his claws ejected from his hands. The X-Men were on their way to the scene, flying in the Blackbird.  
  
"Logan, pipe down. You know Jubilee can take care of herself," Rogue said, green eyes looking to Logan from across the aisle. Xavier turned around to look at Rogue then looked back out of the window from his seat as the co-pilot. His mind called out to Storm. She was flying ahead of the jet at nearly super-sonic speeds, being propelled by the wind. "Storm, Jubilee and Husk have just been crushed by a falling building. You must hurry and help Generation-X. Lives are at stake."  
  
"Professor," she answered back mentally, "I am not sure what I can do. If Jubilation and Paige were buried alive, I can remove the rubble but I am unsure if I can save their lives. And what do I do if I encounter, this mutant, this Viral?"  
  
"Do anything in your power to keep those two girls alive. If you do meet the boy, you must strike him as a friend. He needs someone to trust. He is in fear right now."  
  
"Charles, you do realize that every person who is attempting to stop this boy is risking their lives, do you not?"  
  
"Yes I do, and I thank you for that."  
  
'Heavens protect us,' Ororo thought to herself as she finally flew upon the area where there were fires burning, sounds of cries and sirens, and fallen buildings. "What havoc is this?"  
  
Continue?  
  
Author's Closing Notes: I've basically answered the fan fiction challenge, but I don't know whether or not to continue it and make it into a real story; beyond the challenge. 


	2. I Have a Plan

Title: Viral  
  
Author: Viral  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men. Claimer: I do own Viral.  
  
Author's Note: This story is the result of a fan fiction challenge.  
  
The challenge: No more telepaths or TKs -- create a mutant whose powers are quite unique...  
  
Note: The X-Men, Generation-X, and Blink from AoA are included.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"Professor, I have arrived at the scene," Ororo said after pressing the 'X' symbol on her wrist and speaking into the intercom. Everyone on the Blackbird could hear the strong voice of the Windrider.  
  
"Storm, I will mentally be your guide so that you may find the correct falling building," Xavier said as he turned off the intercom. He closed his eyes as Scott took full control of the jet and mentally placed himself with Ororo. Ororo's eyes closed as well as she no longer flew, but hovered in place above all the chaos below.  
  
"Yes, Professor, I see it now," she says when she finally opens her eyes. Xavier returns back to his physical body and opens his eyes.  
  
He faces the team as he turns away from the large window that is in the front of the Blackbird, "Storm is going to perform a rescue for Jubilee and Husk. I did not want to mention this before, but if anything happens to there..."  
  
Logan's growl interrupted Xavier's words, "If Jubilee is hurt, Chuck, it's her blood on your hands."  
  
"I understand that Logan. You must calm down and have faith."  
  
-=-=-  
  
"Oomph," Ororo grunted as she continued to hover in the air with one hand raise above her head. A lightning bolt exerted from her body and thunder rolled within the clouds as a torrential rain began to fall upon the fire. Slowly the fires began to dampen and Ororo was able to hover lower to the building where Husk and Jubilee were buried.  
  
"Storm, what can I do to help?" M said, flying towards Storm where her arms in front of her face to block the rain from entering her eyes.  
  
"Monet, keep an eye on the boy. He does not need to escape our sight. Charles and the rest of the X-Men will be arriving shortly!" Storm answered over the wind as it picked up speed and as the rain began to fall harder and colder.  
  
M flew away from the scene as Storm pointed her hands downward. The wind began to rush into it self from all different directions until it started to form a whirlwind. At first it was invisible, but slowly became visible as dirt and debris began to fly into it and give it a blackish color. The large amounts of debris flew into the air with the whirlwind as Storm commanded its removal with grunts.  
  
"Where are they?" Storm questioned herself as she began to remove the little amount of debris left. She flew closer, adjusting her eyes for a detailed search. Her caramel skin was untouched by the rain, but her hair was tangled from the fast-moving wind. She quickly tied her hair into a long ponytail before she hovered down, only a few inches above the ground.  
  
She was about to contact the Professor until she saw something move. It looked like a peach-colored blob of fatty tissue, but as she looked closer she could see the shape of a teenage girl. It was obvious Husk had changed her body into a soft substance to protect herself and Jubilee without crushing Jubilee beneath her.  
  
Storm landed on the ground and approached the bodies as they lay there, squirming and bleeding. "Storm! Are they okay?" Banshee asked as he ran, out of breath, to Storm's side.  
  
"No, it does not seem so," Ororo said as she lifted Husk from atop of Jubilee's body. The scene was even worse for Jubilee. Blood slowly seeped from the Chinese-American's scalp.  
  
"Sean, oh my goodness!" Emma Frost screamed in her high-pitched voice as she caught sight of Jubilee's appearance.  
  
"Emma, this is not time for hysterics. You must quickly get these two back to your jet and get medical care! Hank will be arriving soon," Ororo said as she lifted Jubilee's body and placed her in Sean's arms then went back to helping Husk up, who was partly conscious.  
  
"Who do you think you are? I repaid my debt for being in the Hellfire's Club. You have no right giving me orders, Storm!" Emma said. They both had been going at it since Emma was 'The White Queen' in association with the Hellfire's Club. Ever since Emma had joined with Xavier's alliance, Ororo had been more than timid in calling her an ally. Their quarrel had become more than unhealthy.  
  
"We shall discuss who is in charge at a later time," Ororo said with lightning flickering in her eyes, "As for now, you will do whatever you can to keep your members alive! As for me, I already have orders to carry out." A gust of wind carried Ororo's body aloft before another word was said.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"Jono, get him now!" M yelled from the sky to Jonothan Starsmore, better known as Chamber.  
  
The British student nodded to M from on top of a fallen building. Blue energy began to sprout from his body, sending his hair upwards as if it was being blown by wind. The energy slowly began to take on a reddish color until it lashed out at Viral who had his back against a tall brick building.  
  
Viral had been cornered by M and Chamber and had not spoken a word. Neither of them had attempted to speak to him either. M was more concerned with her twin sisters, Penance, who was lying unconscious because of Viral. Chamber was also upset because he had heard what happened to Husk, the girl who loved him and the girl he loved.  
  
The psionic energy quickly shot at Viral with intensity. Viral yelled as he barely missed the blast of energy and fell back into the wall that he was once standing against. The walls' surface was a weak, green mold now. "Ah!" Viral yelled when he fell, then began to run the other way through the abandoned building.  
  
Through the brick wall came a loud crash as M broke through it. She hovered for a bit, looking to see where Viral had run to as her eyes adjusted to the darkness inside the building. As she looked around it looked like an abandoned warehouse.  
  
"LEAVE!" Viral yelled with a feral growl as he jumped off of a staircase and took M down to the ground. As his hands met with her Generation X outfit, it slowly deteriorated into a pile of dust. Viral shook his head in fear as he ran away from M's unfortunate position. Running towards the condemned entrance of the building as means of escape, Viral was met with a deadly psionic blast, which broke through the entrance and sent his body flying backwards.  
  
Viral squinted his eyes at Chamber who was slowly approaching him, walking slowly. "It ain't winter time dogg, take the scarf off," Viral said as he kicked at Chamber's face. The scarf went flying away as Chamber was unable to control the surge of psionic energy. The walls began to rattle as the mutant power flew in every direction and began to bring the building down.  
  
Viral ran out stealthily as he looked around, searching for somewhere to run or hide. The abandoned warehouse began to fall as bricks were removed out of their place. Viral picked up speed in his legs as he ran from the scene.  
  
Ororo hovered on the wind as she spotted Viral and the falling building. "What astonishment! He can only be eighteen years of age!" she said to herself.  
  
"Seventeen to be exact, sugah," Rogue said as she ran her fingers through her brunette hair, "Flabbergastin, ain't it?"  
  
Ororo turned around, happy to see her fellow flying friend at her side. "Yes, it is amazing. I expected him to be much younger with such lack of control."  
  
"He may not have control of his powers, but he is fine, ain't he: that luscious caramel skin, smooth jet-black hair, and those tempting dark brown eyes. If I wouldn't had known he was seventeen I would have given him a holler," Rogue winked to Storm.  
  
"Rogue, are you concerned only with men?" Storm asked with a slight smile on her face.  
  
"He ain't a man yet, sugah, but I could train him in no time," Rogue replied. Storm was about to reply before both Rogue and herself turned to face the collapsing building where they saw a blast of psionic energy erupting and heard the scream of M. "Storm, you go after the hunk. Ain't much I can do to slow him down. I'll try and keep the warehouse from fallin before the Gen Xers get crushed," Rogue said in her southern country accent.  
  
"Very well," Storm replied as she began to fly after Viral who had found his way onto the New Jersey Turnpike amongst a swarm of speeding cars.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"Professor, I fear for their lives. It seems as if everything in my medical profession has never covered a topic such as this," Beast said as he examined the viruses plaguing Leech and Artie's lungs.  
  
"Hank, I'm glad that you have arrived. I have an idea," Emma Frost said as she walked onto the Blackbird.  
  
"I'm glad someone has come up with solution. Thus far all my attempts have failed," Hank answered.  
  
"If you can find some type of way to wake up Everett, we may be able to find an anti-virus that will cure at least some of the victims and even be able to stop Viral with the help of Blink's portals," she said, nodding to the purple mutant who was standing with her arm's crossed and a look of annoyance clearly spread on her face.  
  
"But how?'  
  
"Charles and myself can travel through Everett's mind and mentally alert his subconscious of the situation. Although consciously, his body will not be preparing for the immunization you will make for him, he will be ready and should be able to control Viral's abilities that he has synchronized," Emma continued.  
  
"I see what you're saying," Jean interjects, "But how will waking Everett up help us find a cure?"  
  
"You no see, chere?" Gambit asks Jean, "De mutant cured de little girl on de street."  
  
"Yes, indeed he did. While in the midst of the destruction, there was a girl dying from his virus. He bent down and it seemed like he was concentrating very hard, but he was able to heal her," Beast answered.  
  
"So within him are not only viruses, but cures. It just takes a lot of his energy and concentration to create the cure. With Everett's undoubted control of his abilities, he could create an anti-virus that we could manipulate into a serum," Xavier said.  
  
"So what're we gonna do? Sit around here and wait while you play doctor geniuses?" Wolverine growls with frustration from sitting on the Blackbird while Rogue and Storm got the action.  
  
"Logan, I do not wish to endanger any more lives than necessary," Xavier answered.  
  
"M and Chamber been crashed like a party by the Mississippi swamp," Rogue noted, and everyone faced her. In her arms where a bloody Chamber and M. Chamber's scarf was wrapped around him sloppily, but enough to contain the raging psionic energy.  
  
"That's it for Generation X," Banshee answered with his angry Irish accent. "Xavier it's time ye send out yer X-Men. There's nothing more we can do."  
  
"I can't send anyone else out on the battlefield against this child!" Xavier yelled with exasperation.  
  
"I'm goin back out there," Rogue said to Xavier in defiance.  
  
"I'm going to. You didn't bring me here to sit around, Charles," Blink said, standing up straight from off of the Blackbird's wall.  
  
"She's right, Storm needs our help. She is out there by herself with that mutant," Cyclops says as his eye lens takes in some of the fluorescent lighting of the jet.  
  
The mutants file out quickly, before Xavier can tell them they cannot go. "God protect them."  
  
-=-=-=-  
  
Author's Closing Notes: This is my first full action/adventure in a long time, so I was invigorated to write more. I do plan on writing more just to see what can happen, and I do plan on actually giving Viral some dimensional characteristics besides his mutant abilities. :) 


	3. A Deadly Encounter

Title: Viral  
  
Author: Viral  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men.  
Claimer: I do own Viral.  
  
Author's Note: This story is the result of a fan fiction challenge. This section does include a bit of development for the custom character.  
  
The challenge: No more telepaths or TKs -- create a mutant whose powers are quite unique...  
  
Note: The X-Men, Generation-X, and Blink from AoA are included.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"By the skies, what is he doing?" Storm asks herself as she flies over the New Jersey Turnpike where cars and collisions have induced fires. It was obvious they had all swerved in unfamiliar motions to avoid Viral as he ran across the ever-wide highway, already noted for its many accidents.  
  
Storm did not produce any rain clouds to douse the fires. That would only make the situation worse with the gasoline and oils that fueled the automobiles. She finally spotted Viral as he neared the forest line and a bolt of lightning blocked his path with the fall of a tree. Viral stood, without moving, wondering what had happened.  
  
Not noticing the white-haired wonder coming behind him, Viral continued to stand without moving, wondering if God had attempted to strike him down. "Viral? Am I right?" Storm questioned as she landed a few feet away from him, ignoring the sounds of continual crashing, cursing, and screams.  
  
Viral turned around in shock from the voice and began tobacco away from Storm. "What do you want? Leave me alone, aight?" He shoved Storm with the gloved part of his hand and hopped over the tree that had been knocked down.  
  
Storm did not follow; she stood there and held out her hand. "Please wait, child, I do not wish to harm you."  
  
"Yeah, you and e'rbody else that was chasin me," Viral mumbled as he ran under the shadows of the trees. Storm had no choice but torn after him. She took off the brooch that held together her cape and let pitfall to the ground. There was no sense in allowing her cape to get her tangled by the tree branches.  
  
Under the darkness of the tree's protection, Storm was still able to see very well. Her cat-like eyes were also apart of her mutation, although not as good as team members such as Logan. "Viral, please, do not run from me. I only wish to - ah!" Storm grunted as a tree began to gradually descend towards her until it fell almost completely on her body. A gust of icy wind held the tree together as she noticed a green mold had been spreading across its trunk. Obviously Viral's work.  
  
"What do you want?" Viral asked loudly and angrily from his spot in a tree.  
  
"I only wish to help you," Storm said, "I am a mutant too."  
  
"That's obvious, broad," Viral said sarcastically, "Never saw a woman with white hair that ran as fast as you."  
  
"My hair color is not a part of my mutation. It is descended trait throughout my family."  
  
"I feel sorry for you, lady."  
  
Storm continued to look around, trying to find exactly where his voice was coming from. When she found that impossible, a light wind began to blow from all directions, almost unnoticeable to Viral. When Storm felt the wind being stopped from one direction, she knew it had to be Viral'sbody. She looked upward in a tree on her extreme left.  
  
When Viral noticed her eyes on him, he hopped from the tree and slowly began to take off his gloves. "What? You gonna attack me like your little friends back there?"  
  
"No, I do not wish to attack you," Storm said as she remained in her position, facing him. "My name is Ororo Munroe, but my closest of friends know me as Storm."  
  
"Ah, really? Nice to meet you," Viral said with a phony smile spread across his face, "Now I'll be goin."  
  
He began to go off in the opposite direction. "They calmer Storm for a reason," Storm says as her eyes began to shine with lightning and a light whirlwind began to lift Viral's body and spin him until he fell dizzily to the ground.  
  
"Very cute," Viral said as he charged at Storm. She gently floated above him and he ran into a tree's trunk. As the side of his face touched the rough bark of the tree it began to dissolve into a green mold. It quickly began to fall and its weight sent Storm to the ground. Feeling as if she was going to die from the pressure on her chest and the sudden suffocation, she suddenly felt a rush of cool air against her face. The tree had all been devoured by the 'virus' and was now nothing but a pile of dirt on her X-attire." They call be Viral for a reason."  
  
Storm stood up, blue eyes looking into Viral's dark brown orbs which seemed as if it were black. Light shone in from the sky above where the large tree no longer stood, giving them both ample light to see one another clearly. "Now that we are much better acquainted, Viral," Storm said as she wiped the dust from her clothing, "May I speak with you in a much reasonable manner."  
  
"Call me Dontè," he answered with his arms crossed and his head tilted slight to the side.  
  
"Dontè," she said, smiling, already finding the name very 'fun' to pronounce. "Have you ever heard of the Xavier's Institute?" She awaited a response but her did nothing. "It is a school for gifted youngsters, such as yourself. It offers a normal high school curriculum, sometimes more advanced, and the entire student body is composed of mutants."  
  
"So? I'm done with high school. I'm on my way to college. What does that have to do with me?" he said, straightening his head from its tilt and continuing, "Besides, it won't make no difference whether I'm in a regular school or some fancy spot for mutants."  
  
"It will surely make an impression on your grammar."  
  
"Don't go dissin me---"  
  
"I am not trying to 'diss' you," the word stammered off of Storm's tongue. "I am offering you a safe haven where you need not worry about keeping secrets."  
  
"Secrets? Everybody in my school, church, family, and clubs know about my little gift. I don't got nothin to hide," Viral replied with his eyes squinted in speculation.  
  
"Really? You have a very respectable amount of people around you."  
  
"Yeah I do. And it was nice talking to you, Ms. Munroe, but I got some things I need to take care of," Viral said as he slipped his gloves back on.  
  
"Please, Dontè, if only for a few hours, come with me now? At least meet my mentor, Professor Xavier. He has excellent skills in helping mutants learn to control their abilities," she says with a slight smile on her face.  
  
"There he is!" came an unrecognizable voice followed by the sound of a gunshot. The winds suddenly shifted to accommodate the velocity of the bullet as it all sounded out clearly in Storm's ears.  
  
"Dontè!" Storm shouted as fog began to spread around the ground and became so thick that whoever was there was now running into themselves and the trees. Storm ran to the mutant's side whom was still standing, looking around in confusion. "Are you okay? Did they miss?"  
  
"Apparently not, yo," Viral said with fierceness as he looked at his arm which had a red dot on it.  
  
"But," Storm's eyes fluttered in confusion, "Your skin does not seemed to be pierced. Merely irritated at the most," she said as she lifted her hand a few inches above his arm, studying the red dot carefully.  
  
Storm went back into her memory at the very sounds she had heard on the wind. She remembered the whistle of the bullet and the rush of wind as it shot pass a falling leaf. Then there was the cringing sound of the solid metal crashing into skin... but no burst; finally a sound of dust falling to the ground. "Viral - Dontè, is it possible that infected the bullet before it could ever reach any further than the first layer of your skin?"  
  
They both looked down to see, yes, surely a pile of dust. "Holla at ya boy," he said with a smile of pride on his face. His skin had actually stopped a bullet, one of the most dangerous things on Earth when combined with its companion, a gun.  
  
"Quickly, the fog is beginning to dissipate. Your assailant will definitely be checking to see if he has succeeded in taking your life," Storm absent-mindedly grabbed his arm and before she knew it her lips were quivering as she loss all feeling in her legs.  
  
Her mobility is brought to naught as Viral stepped back with wide eyes in shock. Storm's white hair slowly turned brown as it was forced into the ground. Her eyes closed halfway and she mightily gasped for air. Her lungs began to burn with excruciating pain and she felt lymph nodes bulge all across her neck.  
  
Viral looked up from Storm's fatal position as heard a gun cock and noticed all the fog had simply disappeared. As he expected a trigger to be pulled, his eyes noticed a red beam of light and energy and the gun was sent flying towards his feet. He hopped up as the gun slid into a mud puddle and then looked again in confusion.  
  
"Oh my lamb," Jean yelled as she saw Storm slow suffering on the ground, "Ororo!" Viral's next site was a redhead approaching Ororo. He slowly began to step back until he was met by a certain portal-hopper who appeared behind him.  
  
"What did you do to her, nimrod?" Blink said as she jumped from out of the portal and prepared to send an acrobatic kick to Viral's head.  
  
Instead, his clothed elbow was sent deep into the purple mutant's stomach and she flew into a tree's trunk. Despite his victory against one mutant, he felt rather trapped as he began to see the silhouettes of Gambit, Wolverine, and Cyclops approaching him.  
  
"Wolverine, put the two bags of trash together," Cyclops said in a commanding, disgusted voice. Before he understood what was happening, a member of the Friends of Humanity organization crashed into Viral's chest as his body was thrown.  
  
Both Viral and the man grunted and fell to the ground. "I knew it was a lie," Viral mumbled as his mind reminded him of the doubts in Storm's sincerity. "She set me up."  
  
"You've done enough killing for one day. We can't let you do this anymore!" Cyclops said yelled at Viral as the FOH member fainted.  
  
"I wasn't tryin to kill anybody, so just back off!" Viral said in a yell as well, brown eyes keeping in every motion as he watched Cyclops lift his hand to his visor. "Storm promised me I wouldn't get hurt, neph. Looks like she's wrong," Viral said in a grave voice.  
  
"I'm not going to hurt you, kid, but I am going to put you to sleep," Cyclops said as a red beam of light shot out of his eyes. Viral stood there and looked down to his chest where the optic blast hit him. His shirt was torn and almost catching aflame, but the golden brown skin on his chest was unharmed, only showing a red scar from irritated skin.  
  
Viral inhaled with his lips puckered outward in a pout, as he jumped up and kicked himself off the tree that was behind him. Flying forward his fist made an imprint in Cyclops' face as his other feet kicked in the air at Gambit. Cyclops went to the ground, as limp as Storm was.  
  
By this time, Viral noticed he wasn't moving, but his body was still in the air and there was great pressure on his ankles. He looked up as his upper body crashed into the ground and Gambit was holding his feet, kinetically charging his boots.  
  
-=-=-=-  
  
Author's Closing Notes: This is definitely not the end, but I'm a bit of a writer's block. Didn't want to keep anyone waiting for this chapter. Hopefully I'll get over the block soon and update. 


	4. Too Much

Title: Viral  
  
Author: Viral  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men.  
Claimer: I do own Viral.  
  
Author's Note: This story is the result of a fan fiction challenge. This is a short chapter, still trying to overcome writer's block.  
  
The challenge: No more telepaths or TKs -- create a mutant whose powers are quite unique...  
  
Note: The X-Men, Generation-X, and Blink from AoA are included.  
  
-=-=-  
  
Viral's head was in the dirt, his legs held up by the muscular Remy Lebeau. His face was facing upward to the sky, brown eyes opening and closing frantically. His jet-black hair was mixing with the dirt of the forest. As he began to slip his foot from within the boots, he heard a growl and saw nothing but a short man jumping towards him. His eyes flinched closed as Wolverine crouched over his body, two claws extended from his knuckles. The claws were on either side of his face and there was another one slowly sliding out of the middle, towards the bridge of his nose.  
  
A growl preceded Logan's words, "Kid, there's no more playin around. Yer gonna come quietly with us. Yer too dangerous to be out here on your own. All we wunna do is help you out."  
  
Viral's deep, dark, brown eyes looked decisively into Logan's blue eyes. Then his brown orbs looked to the right side of his eyes then moved again to the left side. Finally, he looked once more into Logan's eyes. "You don't scare me," Viral said in a mumbling tone as he grunted and both his feet escaped from the kinetically charged boots that Gambit was still holding. As planned, his face heedlessly moved and rubbed against the sharp adamantium claws. Viral's face showed deep red marks but that was all as Wolverine toppled over and began choking uncontrollably.  
  
"Logan!" Remy shouted in his deep, heavy Cajun accent. He grabbed for Wolverine's falling body as he inattentively threw the charged boots over his shoulder. Hearing the large explosion as the boots came in contact with a large Oak tree, Remy went down for cover, crushing Wolverine under his tall frame.  
  
"Looks like Ah came just in time," Rogue says with confidence as she wraps her arms around the falling tree. She grunts and groans as she lifts the tree. Taking it into the sky as she flies with it in her grips, she begins to feel the heat from the fire that was traveling on it from the kinetic impact. She drops the tree from her arms above the other treetops, as her jacket catches aflame.  
  
Jean notices Rogue's disposition and finally stands up from Storm and Cyclops' side. Their vital signs were steadily weakening. She had managed to get in contact with Xavier. He reassured her that everything would work fine and noted that Banshee was on his way to help. Things seemed only to get worse as their only rain-wielder was dying from a virus. Jean lifts her right hand in the air as her red hair blows in the wind. "Rogue, is there a lake nearby?" Jean yells to the hovering auburn-headed woman as she telekinetically begins to lift her body and holds the burning tree steadily in the air.  
  
"Nothin I can see from here, sugah," Rogue says, using her hands as a visor as she scouts the area with her green eyes. "How're we supposed to stop him if we can't even touch him, Jean?" Rogue says, changing the subject.  
  
"By the way, where is he?" Jean continues to hold up the burning tree but doesn't notice that sparks are falling from it and landing below onto the forestry.  
  
-=-=-  
  
Meanwhile, Viral had slipped away through the trees, making his way out of the forest, from the opposite direction of the Turnpike. His brown eyes were fierce as his mind went crazy. Everything that happened throughout the day was turning his mind into a never-ending nightmare. His head felt as if his brain was jumping and pulsing inside of it.  
  
Remembering the falling buildings, all affected by his caramel skin, he found it hard to imagine how many lives were affected. He wanted to run back and save each and every one of them. To lay his hands upon their arms and use all his might to insert a cure into their bloodstream.  
  
He wanted to believe Storm, the first mutant he ever trusted, was telling the truth about helping him, but her associates seemed the least bit interested in his safety.  
  
He continued to run, quickly, jumping over and around bushes. His heart raced at an incredible speed as trees fell behind him as they sometimes scratched against his skin. Then, as if all in a quick moment, he heard a loud yell and fell to the ground in absolute pain. His back seemed to cave over as he fell face forward into a mud pile.  
  
His face was now scrunched up in a frown of anger as he looked up through his mud-covered eyes to see Banshee hovering above. "Yer nae going anywhere else, laddie. The road ends hear for ye. I do nae want to hurt ye. We need yer help to save our friends. C'mon lad, help us out and maybe we can help ye out, too." Viral looked at the Irish and blonde mutant with fierce eyes and a scowl on his face. After hearing no response, Banshee floated higher into the air, "If ye are nae going to help us and let us help ye, I have orders to get rid of ye. I can't let ye hurt others."  
  
-=-=-=-  
  
Author's Closing Notes: I'm involving the other characters, slowly but surely. Many of them are evidently down for the count. If anyone can help me with my Irish accent for Banshee, please e-mail me. And, I would like to include Nightcrawler, but I fear I will never get his accent right. If you want to see Kurt in here, please e-mail me and help with his accent. If I write him, I want to write him correctly. virtue@freehomepage.com 


	5. Complete Disposition

Title: Viral  
  
Author: Viral  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men, Generation-X, or Blink.  
Claimer: I do own Viral.  
Disclaimer 2: I do not own Paul Harris. He is the created character of Jonothan [ncsuguy@hotmail.com].  
  
Author's Note: Not as much focus on Viral this time. :) The other X-guys and Gen-X get the spotlight. Also, a character submitted into the story gets introduced.  
  
The challenge: No more telepaths or TKs -- create a mutant whose powers are quite unique...  
  
Note: The X-Men, Generation-X, and Blink from AoA are included.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"One last chance, lad," Banshee said as he began to take in a deep breath. All at once his vocal chords became ear-piercingly loud and unbelievably strong as he released sonic sound waves from his mouth in Viral's direction.  
  
Viral's body was propped into the air as the sound waves knocked the ground. As his body hopped and fell again, he yelled in pain as his spinal chord felt like it was breaking into two. Another grunt came as his body was hit by one of the powerful waves of sound and his body was tossed into a nearby tree.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"Cajun, get Storm!" Wolverine commanded as he began to choke from the smoke that the forest fire was creating. Jean carelessly had let the sparks from the burning tree fall below and that entire section of the forest was now in flames and doomed for ruin.  
  
Jean desperately began to flatten out a telekinetic shield that she had placed on the burning tree. Slowly, the flames began to smother. Soon, she realized how futile her attempts were as the rest of the forest lay in flames anyway. The tree suddenly dropped from the sky as the other X-members carried each other from the fiery furnace.  
  
"Mon ami, dis is more trouble den Gambit t'ink it's worth," Gambit said as he carried Ororo's limp body in his arms, running from the direction of the fire.  
  
Rogue carried Cyclops' body as she flew near Gambit, "Nobody asked you, swamp rat."  
  
"Where's Logan?" Jean asked as she finally landed down on the ground from the sky, her mind straining from all the telekinetic use.  
  
"He went back for Clarice," Gambit said as he choked from the overwhelming smoke.  
  
"We can't leave both of them back there!" Jean said in frustration as she turned back towards the fire. Placing a telekinetic shield over her body, she grunted, feeling herself getting weaker from the excessive use of her abilities over such a long period of time. "I'm going to get them!"  
  
"No need, red," Logan said with his usual smirk and scowl combined on his face. Blink was doing fine as well as they both ran from the hot fire. Jean seemed to stand still as a statue for a moment, as she finally gained momentum and began to run from the fire with the rest of them.  
  
"What, under a coyote's moon, is that sound?" Rogue said as she stopped at a steady hover with Cyclops underarms pitched on her hands and looked towards the sky. Overhead was a helicopter with red-letters on their side as an emblem. As her green eyes focused closer she noticed the letters were a force not to be reckoned with at the time. FOH. "It's the Friend's of Humanity!"  
  
"That doesn't sound too friendly to me," Blink said as she pointed to a black orb falling from the sky. Undoubtedly, it was not a black orb as it became visible.  
  
"Don't worry!" Jean yelled as she turned to face the bomb and attempted to throw it off target. She was unable to as her mind strained and sweat began to fall from her forehead. Her abilities were strained out. "Ah! I can't move it!"  
  
"Move your butts!" Rogue said frantically as they all began to run as quickly as possible: Gambit still limited to movement while holding Storm's body and Rogue flying as quickly and as nimble as possible through the trees with Cyclops' body.  
  
"Why," pant, "Can't," pant, "Gambit just," pant, "Blow it up?" Gambit asked. His pants were frequent as his eyes stayed focused, being careful not to run into a tree or to fall over a fallen one, which were randomly scattered around.  
  
"Those bombs could contain biological poisons inside of them," Jean said, her pace not as fast as Gambit's.  
  
"It's gotta be safer than dealin with Viral, sugah," Rogue said in dark sarcasm.  
  
"We can't outrun it!" Blink pointed out as her white eyes widened and she pointed as the bomb descended directly upon them.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"What happened to me?" Everett asked. Inside his mind were both Professor Xavier and Emma Frost, using their telepathic abilities, combined, to get through the mental defenses Everett's subconscious held.  
  
"You became in sync with Viral, the mutant you were chasing. Unbelievably, you were unable to control his abilities when you first received them and ended up infecting yourself with a virus. But, seeing as you are functioning normally, although in your mind, I do believe that you have cured yourself while sleeping," Xavier commented and allowed Emma to continue his words.  
  
"Everett, there is a lot going on. Our entire team has fallen: Jubilee, M, Chamber, Artie, and Leech. Mr. Cassidy is out trying to calm the mutant now, but who knows how long he can last?" Emma began and sighed. "We need you to prepare yourself for a serum that Mr. McCoy will be implanting into your body."  
  
"What do you mean? I don't understand." Everett said, as he quirked an eyebrow.  
  
"It's pretty obvious that you have gained control," Professor Xavier interjected, "It's always been a fact about your abilities. You are far better apt to control the abilities of the person you have become in sync with than the original host, and even push them to another level. It is apart of your mutation. We believe, that by now, you are far more able to control those abilities and use them to assist us."  
  
"Okay," Everett says and thinks for a moment, "Yeah, that makes a lot of sense."  
  
"Dr. McCoy will be injecting the serum into your bloodstream as soon as we break off this telepathic conversation. When he does you will have to be ready to control the viral abilities and not allow them to contaminate the air. You will have to meet us on the Blackbird afterwards. We have a lot of people that need to be disinfected," Emma said as she and Xavier slowly began to fade out of Everett's mind.  
  
"Alright," Everett said in submission as the two mentors disappeared.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"Hank, he's ready," Xavier said with his complimentary sigh. The blue-furred mutant blinked his blue eyes and made his way off of the Blackbird. Silently, his strong and agile legs took him into a long leap that could have been mistaken for flight as he landed softly in front of the Generation-X jet.  
  
He cleared his throat as the door to the jet opened and he looked around as his beastly eyes quickly adhered to the dimness of the jet. He could see sweat trickling down Everett's face in his deep sleep. Taking his medical pack off of his back, he opened it up and took out a sterile container with a needle in it.  
  
After taking it out of the container, he combined it with a small, clear vile that held the serum in it. Slowly and carefully he pushed up on the handle as he removed any air bubbles that could have been inside. He inspected the needle and vile one last time as he took an alcohol pack from his medical pack and wiped it on Everett's bare arm.  
  
Without further a due, Beast injected the serum into Everett's arms and quickly jumped back as he remained unaware of the effects it would have on the mutant. His blue eyes watched carefully with intent as Everett's body began to glow a rainbow color and his mutant aura picked up on all the nearby mutants. When he finally awakened, he had become in sync with Beast and the first thing he did when his eyes opened as jumped onto the jet's ceiling.  
  
"That is not a pleasing sight," Beast said as he turned his eyes away from Everett, "Couldn't you have gotten unconscious without being naked?" Beast hopped off of the jet as Everett noticed this and quickly covered himself with the blanket he had been laying under.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"Everett, it's nice of you to join us," Emma said, looking down to the watch on her wrist.  
  
He gave a subtle look of annoyance to Emma, as he looked around at all the injured mutants, merely looking for one. "Jubilee..." he said in a whisper and almost a gasp as he saw her bandaged and bruised body laying still.   
  
"Jubilee is alright," Xavier said in a commanding voice, "She has stabilized and is not infected with any virus. Leech and Artie are in the most terrible of situations right now. You must help them, Everett. I understand how much you want to comfort Jubilee, but this is not the time for it."  
  
"You're right," Everett said as he turned his brown eyes away in sadness and then looked to Leech and Artie as they looked nearly dead, their chests rising quickly and falling deeply. He walked to their sides as they lay on the reclined chairs of the Blackbird, and bent down. Placing a hand on Leech and Artie's arms, his body began to show it's rainbow aura and his eyes shut closed.  
  
"How long will it take?" interrupted a voice with a part southern accent. A Caucasian male stood inside the Blackbird at the entrance. His green eyes looked to Emma Frost for an answer as his brown hair remained still under the bright lights of the jet.  
  
Xavier instinctively attempted to enter inside the boy's mind without being noticeable, trying to figure out who he was and whether or not he was a threat. But it was obvious the 19-year-old male was trained to resist probes. He lifted a hand towards Xavier as the blue-eyed leader was thrown out of his chair. "What do ya think yer doin', baldy?"  
  
"Paul, please calm your temper," Emma said as she helped Xavier back into his wheelchair. Charles was still in shock at how fast everything had just happened. "Charles, there is no need to worry. Paul Harris is a possible recruit for Generation-X."  
  
"My apologies Paul," Xavier said as he shook his head, which was accompanied by one of his sighs. "I am Professor Charles Xavier-."  
  
Xavier's words were cut off by the temperamental college student, "I know that, already. Were you blonde when you used to have hair or somethin?" Xavier frowned at the mutant but before he could give his account of disapproval to Emma, he was interrupted.  
  
"Paul, how long have you been watching the situation?" Emma said as she stepped towards him.  
  
"For a while. You better be glad I was in New York for the weekend instead of in NC studyin my brains apart."  
  
"Then I trust you're very aware of what's going on. Sean - Mr. Cassidy is out there fighting Viral with the others. They'll need your help. But be careful not to get to close to the mutant."  
  
"UH!" Xavier grunted as his eyes flinched and his forehead went downward in wrinkles and stress. "The others... I can't sense them! The only two left are Banshee and Viral!"  
  
"He couldn't have killed them all in the twinkling of an eye, Charles! Are you sure?" Emma said as she mentally searched for their brain patterns.  
  
"I do not sense anything from them. Either they are dead or so close to death they cannot be sensed anymore! I told them not to go!"  
  
"Paul, quickly go and help Banshee!" Emma said as her mind became just as boggled as Xavier's.  
  
He rolled over to the jet's version of Cerebro and placed the metallic helmet on his head. "Perhaps Cerebro will help me to organize my thoughts and find them."  
  
Emma's heart was beating harshly as she picked up the mental cheers of FOH members. She looked into their memories and saw the bomb drop and singe the entire area... and the silhouettes of all the X-Men that were there seemed to disappear under the capacity of the bomb. "This can't be true... they're all gone!" she whispers in unbelief as she bites down on her bottom lip.  
  
-=-=-=- 


	6. Sensibility

Title: Viral  
  
Author: Viral  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men, Generation-X, or Blink.  
Claimer: I do own Viral.  
Disclaimer 2: I do not own Paul Harris. He is the created character of Jonothan [ncsuguy@hotmail.com].  
  
Author's Note: Action? Yes. Comedy? Hopefully. Ending? Not yet.  
  
The challenge: No more telepaths or TKs -- create a mutant whose powers are quite unique...  
  
Note: The X-Men, Generation-X, and Blink from AoA are included.  
  
-=-=-  
  
The rainbow-colored aura of Everett swirled around him in light psionic energy as he concentrated on helping the two boys, Leech and Artie, back to good health. His brown eyes were closed with intensity as his forehead wrinkled downward in frustration. Sweat began to form at the tip of his hairline, slowly drooping down to the middle of his forehead as his eyebrows began to shake in concentration.  
  
He could literally feel everything that was happening between him and the boys. His hands were producing a harmless bacterium that entered into their bloodstreams and found the DNA of the boys, the entire count of white blood cells that were attempting to fight the virus in their lungs, and the RNA of the virus itself. As the information slowly collected into the separate reservoir of his viral-encased hands, it absent-mindedly created a virus that would overpower the virus that was in their bodies but not harm the hosts themselves.  
  
If Everett were not experiencing this and seeing it for himself it would be one of the most impossible things to understand. He grunted as the sweat fell over his eyelashes and he began to concentrate even more. Just one slip up could paralyze the boys in a deathly virus.  
  
-=-=-  
  
Another sonic blast from Banshee's mouth sent more blood trickling from Viral's bare shoulder. He gave Viral the chance to help them and to be helped, but was refused. Therefore, he needed to follow his other orders: get rid of Viral at all costs. It just so happens, that getting rid of him was taking a lot longer than estimated.  
  
Viral, on the other hand, was aching and feeling more than nauseous -- and the blood was not making things easier. His dark brown eyes seemed as if they were preparing to shed tears as he looked up to the floating Sean Cassidy who was preparing for another deadly blow of sonic sound waves. As Sean took in a deep breath with his eyes encased under his eyelids, Viral used the opportunity to his advantage. In a quick moment, despite the pain in his shoulder, Viral hopped to his feet and maneuvered into a nearby tree, which was still standing despite Banshee's loud mouth.  
  
As Banshee prepared to release a powerful lungful of energy, he noticed Viral was nowhere in sight. The urban teenager was climbing the large Oak tree. And in a lunge of desperation Viral's body was back in sight with a very loud yell as he grabbed Banshee's blonde hair in his hands and the mutant lost his flight from the sudden shock.  
  
As a virus quickly spread down Banshee's hair and into his scalp, the mutant's blonde hair fell completely off of his head in shavings. Soon the troublesome mutant was on the ground, blood seeping from his arm as the stones in the ground pinched it, and the virus began to send his body into sporadic spasms.  
  
As he looked down to his own bloody shoulder, Viral began to walk in a slow pace from the scene. Nearly limping on one leg, he felt as if all his blood was rushing to his head as he began to feel a heavy feeling overcome him. Guilt. He looked down to Cassidy's dying body, and came to realize that it was not within him to kill anyone.  
  
Bending down he placed a hand on the man's body and the spasms began to slowly relieve themselves. "You'll be alright."  
  
-=-=-  
  
"Charles, I don't want to admit it either, but it looks like they are all dead," Emma said, placing a hand on the mentor's shoulder. He had been so dedicated to his dream that he had converted her onto the side of good. That was definitely not an easy task, and going through this disbelief had to be even harder.  
  
"Emma, it is impossible for one mutant to take down the entire X-Men. They were trained well. Even your Hellfire Club could not defeat them, I have faith that they are still alive."  
  
"Keep havin faith, Chuck," Wolverine said as he hopped out of a dimensional portal, which opened inside the jet."  
  
The Professor could not help to display a look of gratitude, relaxation, and a large smile on his face as he saw the faces of his X-Men with life in them. "Are all of you okay?"  
  
"Scott and Ororo were infected by Viral, Professor. I don't know how long they can last," Jean says, her body shaking with tension and fear.  
  
"Thank the Lord, hallelujah, and then some!" Everett says with excitement all throughout his voice, but also dreariness as he finally releases his hands from Leech and Artie's bodies. They were returning to their normal colors: Artie a red color for his skin, and Leech a green color for his.  
  
"Everett, you did it!" Emma said, bursting out with a smile as she looked to Leech and Artie as they slowly began to wake up.  
  
"But you seem rather tired, my young friend. Perhaps you should rest before taking on another tedious task?" Beast recommends, being the most intelligent in the medics.  
  
"No, I'm okay. I think I'm getting better at this thing," he says with confidence, "Besides, it looks like Mr. Summers and Ms. Munroe are doing bad."  
  
Everyone turned to look at Ororo, her flesh no longer its beautiful caramel color, but now a grayish color, which seemed to signify her soul being pulled from her. They then turned to see Cyclops was turning blue as the virus attacked his lungs and chest cavity, slowly traveling up his esophagus. Everett laid his hands on Scott and Ororo as the process began once more.  
  
Jean, Remy, Logan, and Clarice were attended to medically by Hank as he looked through their injuries, including fractures, burns, and cuts, which left them all extremely tired and weakened. The Blackbird had become an infirmary.  
  
-=-=-  
  
Paul finally reached an area over the forest aligning the New Jersey Turnpike where he saw trees fallen and scattered abroad. Definitely the work of Banshee as he noticed the unusual cuts and breaks in the trees and the numerous amount of splinters still floating around in the air. He came to a complete stop and hover as he noticed Banshee's body lying on the ground. He flew down to the mutant's side and landed on the uneven ground.  
  
Pressing the button to the "X" on his wrist, he quickly heard the voice of Emma Frost in response, "Yes?"  
  
"This is Paul, blondie. Your boy Banshee is down and it dun look like he's gettin up anytime soon," he said with his part-country accent.  
  
"Viral has gotten him too?"  
  
"By the looks of it."  
  
"Paul, listen to my orders carefully. Do not go and fight this mutant. He doesn't seem like he could be much of a threat, but how could he take down Sean if he couldn't even reach him? Let him be and we can try a different approach," Emma commanded over the communicator.  
  
"Yeah right, as if I'm gonna miss out on this fun? Just send somebody over to pick up your buddy. They'll be sure to find 'im."  
  
Paul quickly took flight again as he dropped his communicator from his wrist. No distractions: just him and Viral. Having the ability to manipulate and control gravity, he could easily take flight by shifting the gravity around him: making a unique point and center on the Earth just so he could fly at a certain altitude, a certain speed, and in a certain direction. He had mastered his skills fairly well, with the help of Generation-X a few times, and was very confident in what he could do.  
  
Flying over the treetops, he noticed Viral was completely out of the forest. Now he was flying over the suburbs of Northern New Jersey where many cars were not moving and many doors were closed and locked as news spread about the sudden outbreak of mutant activity.  
  
Only one car was moving through the entire county, a very easy target to trace for this gravity-manipulation mutant. Feeling the pull of gravity was like a homing device, telling him the exact weights and speed of movement on whatever was resisting gravity. When he spotted the gravitational distraction it turned out to be an Acura MDX, silver-colored, and driving back towards the city.  
  
When he caught up to the SUV, he contemplated a witty introduction of himself, but when the time came he forgot all about what he wanted to say. Instead the SUV lifted slightly off of the ground when he pointed his palm toward it. The next thing he saw was Viral jumping out of the Acura with a very angry look on his face, rubbing his gloved hands together. Always being prepared for the worse, a supply of gloves was nothing Viral ever worried about.  
  
As Viral looked for the person who had stopped him, his eyes stopped with a gaze of bewilderment at the new face. The man seemed his age, a freshman in college, and amused by the use of his abilities. "Halt! I am Gravity-Man. Wait... no... that sound's dumb. I am Floating Guy. Hold up... I'm coming up with a name. Uhm, Super Outer Space Dude. Er, G. Diddy!" Paul shook his head as Viral looked in confusion. "Anyway, none of that matters! All that matters is I've had enough of you kickin around my friends. It's time somebody teached you a lesson in manners, youngin."  
  
"Youngin?" Viral looked in amusement, confusion, and disbelief as 'Gravity-Man' floated in the air with his palm out, holding Viral's SUV. "Look, I've had enough of this for one day. Just put my car down so I can be on my way, okay buddy?"  
  
"Little Viral getting soft, eh?" Paul said as Viral's legs were removed from under him by a pull of gravity and the mutant was hung upside down, nearly hitting his head against the asphalt street.  
  
"What do you want?"  
  
"Huh?" Paul looked in confusion. He didn't know what he wanted. After all, all the X-Men and Generation-X members were safe and Viral was no longer spreading any viruses as he was being hung upside down. "Revenge... I guess."  
  
"You guess?"  
  
The truck and Viral were slowly dropped to the ground as Paul stood there in a daze. Had he become so interested in fighting Viral that he had forgotten why he came? This left him so confused and shocked that he couldn't move or speak as Viral drove off.  
  
-=-=-  
  
"So, you let him go, sugah?" Rogue asked Paul as the entire mass of mutants sat in the large, yet comfortable Sitting Room of Xavier's Mansion.  
  
"Yeah, sugah," he said, finding it fun to poke at Rogue's accent, not realizing that he had one of his own.  
  
"Despite our failed attempts to stop, defeat, and recruit the boy, we cannot give up. He has a very deadly ability and we need to insure his safety and everyone else's safety," Xavier said, concluding his words.  
  
"Why is he so important? I don't think Magneto wants a living virus in his ranks, despite how powerful he is. Why is he our target?" Monet asked.  
  
"Because, the Professor's dream is for a peaceful co-existence between humans and mutants. The Friend's of Humanity will try to use a mutant like Viral, who can't help his abilities, to prove their evil side," Jubilee said, answering Monet. "Right, Professor?"  
  
"Mhm," Professor said with his hands folded on top of his wheelchair surface.  
  
"So how do de X-Men approach de mutant now, mon ami? Gambit don't d'ink Viral trust us."  
  
"We'll need to approach him as a friend, Remy," the Professor answered.  
  
"I shall be the one to speak with Dontè upon our next encounter," said a recovering Ororo Munroe as her blue eyes looked around the room and she sat in the arms of a protective Logan.  
  
"Do you think that's a smart decision?" Jean asked in concerned sisterhood.  
  
"Indeed, I do. He is a very intelligent young man, and when he finally does see we are only here to help, I believe he will return with me."  
  
Clouds came over the sky as predicted by the forecast. Night fell over the east coast of the US, and rain pelted against the Northeast states. 


	7. Trust

Title: Viral  
  
Author: Viral  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men, Generation-X, or Blink.  
Claimer: I do own Viral.  
Disclaimer 2: I do not own Paul Harris. He is the created character of Jonothan [ncsuguy@hotmail.com].  
  
Author's Note: Please be aware that there is A LOT of dialogue in this chapter. I believe the story will end here. I'm rather done with any more ideas for this storyline and I think it's time to begin something new and fresh. So, the final chapter awaits reading. Plus, you finally get to see who Dontè [Viral] really is, outside of the mutant abilities.  
  
The challenge: No more telepaths or TKs -- create a mutant whose powers are quite unique...  
  
Note: The X-Men, Generation-X, and Blink from AoA are included.  
  
-=-=-  
  
Dontè, the formal Viral, was now looking out of his window on a quiet Saturday. It had remained quiet for at least an hour after he had watched and waited for the Sanitary Engineers to take up the garbage and move onto the next street. He had a lot to think about, especially all the events of the former day.  
  
He felt more than guilty for the lives that were possibly lost from his virus epidemic, but there was little he could do. First thing he knew was he saw a woman being dragged in an alleyway, and he ran after her. He had no idea what he was getting himself into. He made his heroic jumps, kicks, and punches until the man who was dragging the woman was knocked out cold.  
  
But, before he could even offer her a hand up off of the dirty ground, a gang of Hispanic men was blocking the entrance/exit to the dead-end alley. He looked up as he saw one of them pull out a gun. Unaware that bullets would have no effect on him, he began to release a nervous sweat and deadly toxins began to infiltrate the enclosed air of the alley.  
  
One by one the men fell, staggering over each other as their eyes went blind and their lungs began to shrink. The wide effects that his viruses would produce were always unpredictable. But, his good deed was soon overshadowed as he realized the woman was infected as well and soon his own eyes began to blind.  
  
He ran out of the alley, crashing into people and naturally their skin rubbed against his. Soon the entire street was becoming infected as the air became poisonous. Cars crashed and people began to lose control, as Viral's body began to heal itself with a cure that sent him to his knees.  
  
Then, the young mutants approached him. When he finally seemed to get them all off his trail, he was approached by the white-haired Windrider. What an amazing woman. But she just had to grab his arm, didn't she? When she fell to the ground with an infection, he felt the urge to bend down and save her, but the bullet-toting FOH member was not going to allow that. The next thing he knew, he was fighting an adult band of mutants.  
  
Finally, he made it home, not knowing if anyone had survived, except one little girl and Sean Cassidy whom he had cured himself. His brown eyes closed as he imagined the long-term effects that his virus could have on all those had had infected, and it sent deathly shivers and chills down his spine. He needed to be with someone, even if he could not touch him or her, at least being within his or her love was acceptable enough. He decided he would go home for a visit. His apartment was quiet enough to let him think, but not warm with family love as was the home he had grown up in.  
  
As he readied himself to actually leave the house for the morning, he heard a light tap on his window. His brown eyes opened immediately and as he swiftly moved aside the thin, sheer curtain he caught the figure of Ororo and Paul at his window. Quickly he suspected they were there for reasons that were besides their motives and his gloves slowly began to slip off of his hands. Ororo tapped the window again, her blue eyes and stare stopping Dontè and alerting him that there was no cause for alarm.  
  
He pointed his fingers to his left as he walked from his spot on the window chair and opened the door to his small apartment balcony where he met a soft gust of warm summer air. Soon, he was also met by a floating Ororo and not to far behind her a floating Paul. "You're not dead?" Dontè asked Ororo, not even sorting out his words and mentally chastising himself for sounding so rude. He had been taught better than that.  
  
"No, thanks to one of our mutant members, Everett Thomas, better known as Synch, I am alive and well," Ororo responded with a smile across his glossy caramel lips.  
  
"There's actually somebody that knows how to cure these viruses? Maybe they can help me!" Dontè says with excitement in his voice and ambition in his eyes. This was one thing he would pay to get rid of.  
  
"Sorry Dontè, but Everett does not have a unique way of curing any virus that you emit. His mutant ability is an aura that surrounds his body. The purpose of that aura is to locate other mutants, but not only that. It also copies the abilities of nearby mutants. Over the years, he has learned to hold onto those mutant abilities that he has copied for a much longer time than when he started out." Ororo paused as she walked closer to Dontè and Paul looked over the balcony. "We cannot cure a mutant from his or her abilities. There is no cure for it because it is not a disease. All we can do is attempt to educate you in your abilities, train you in their usage, and let you know that you are not very different from anyone else."  
  
"I should've known," Dontè says, almost in the tone of a disappointed mumble as he crosses his arms, "I just can't figure out why I'm the one stuck with this."  
  
"It is not a matter of choice, Dontè. Your mutant ability is simply the next phase in human evolution," she says in an attempt to comfort him.  
  
"Really? Well, I hardly believe in evolution because it makes no sense. Where exactly was our origin if we evolved, sistah?" Dontè questions. He looks to Ororo for an answer, but when he can see that she does not know what to say, he continues. "It supposedly began with a 'big bang' that produced disks into space around the sun, or whateva, which later evolved into planets. Then, suddenly, out of nothing, single-celled organisms began to form on the planet Earth and from them evolved multi-celled organisms, which took millions, perhaps billions of years to evolve into what you see today. Now, I ask you, where exactly was the origin: the 'big bang'? Where was its origin? Holla at me."  
  
"You make a pretty decent point here. But how do explain our life here on Earth?" Ororo asks with a contemplative look across her face.  
  
"God," he answers plainly.  
  
"God? Yeah right, chidlen," Paul laughs as he turns to face a serious-faced Ororo. "And now I'll return to looking down at the ground."  
  
"God," Ororo says as she goes into deep thought, and then suddenly seems to come back to reality. "Why would God curse you with such a gift as emitting viruses from your skin beyond your control and bless me with something as resourceful as controlling the elements of nature?"  
  
"I'm not cursed," Dontè says and his words seem to hang on the air.  
  
"You seem as if you are confident you are not cursed. Can you give me an example as to how your genetic mutation has been a friend to you?" Ororo asks.  
  
"Yestaday," for a moment he seemed as if he were an intellectual suburban youth when he had explained evolution. Now he was back to his ebonical vernacular, "When y'all was chasin me around I was tryin to get to my mom. She was gettin real sick from some type of viral cancer. I didn't know if I could help or not, but when I concentrated enough I actually saw the virus, or whateva, in her body, and I was able to put a cure right inside of her. My 'curse' saved the life of the most important woman to me. It ain't a curse. It was given to me for a reason."  
  
"Oh, and I'm going to drown in tears," Paul laughs and a quick flicker of lightning from Ororo's eyes shuts him up as he once again turns back around to look at the ground from the balcony.  
  
"Dontè, it is very obvious that you are an intelligent young man. Prepared for college, mentally, and aware of every virtue that will establish you as a man of integrity for the rest of your life. But, please, come back with me to the Xavier's Institute. You may still live your life and attend college at your current choice of university. We want to be your friends and see if there is any way you can control these viruses without the protective gloves," Ororo pleads with a hand on Dontè's shoulder.  
  
"I just don't know," he says, nodding his head as he thought deeply.  
  
"Open your eyes, child. You are able to trust me, for I will not let you down and I will be your friend."  
  
"You've already earned my trust."  
  
-=-=-=-  
  
Closing Notes: I know, forgive me for such a stupid ending. :( 


End file.
